


stars in the sand

by skatetownusa



Category: All That (TV 1994), The Island Girls (All That)
Genre: 90s nickelodeon, Angst, Denial of Feelings, F/F, Fluff, Gay, Hurt/Comfort, Lesbian, Lesbian Character of Color, Lesbians, No Lesbians Die, Rivals to Friends to Lovers, Romance, Sapphic, Short Chapters, Slow Burn, island lesbians, making one-note characters fleshed out, making whats already a gilligans island parody gay, nickelodeon, no contact with civilization, this is so niche i know, will probably become mature at a point idk, wlw
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-29
Updated: 2021-02-23
Packaged: 2021-03-01 04:54:16
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 14
Words: 9,104
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23369551
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skatetownusa/pseuds/skatetownusa
Summary: Having already spent a few years perpetually living on an island, Kiki and Fran find themselves feeling more than what they could ever envision.
Relationships: Kiki/Fran





	1. fade away and radiate

**Author's Note:**

> How was there not already a fanfic of these two????

The tides of the sea receded and crashed among the shoreline; it was getting to be a windy night. There was hardly any light with the exception of the stars in the sky. It was picturesque, yet it was taken for granted.

"FRAAAN!" yelled Kiki as she pulled out her coconut horn to blow it near Fran.

Fran was perched upon a log napping away. That was the only thing she had managed to get pleasure from since the incident. She heard Kiki. She just wanted to ignore her.

Dark clouds began rolling over the island with rumbles of thunder following.

Kiki frowned at Fran's refusal to respond, so she inched closer and closer until she blew the horn mere feet away. "Fraaan! Get up, silly! A storm's coming! A storm's coming!"

She jolted up as she covered her ears. "Kiki..." Fran rubbed her eyes. "I just want to get some sleep.."

"What if you get struck by lightning, Fran?!" Kiki, in all honesty, didn't want such a thing to happen. "Lightniiiiiiiiiing! Struck by lightniiiiiiiing!" She started doing one of her little jigs where she carelessly shook her arms and legs.

"How about you get struck by lighting?"

She smiled widely as she grabbed Fran's hand. "Come on, Fraaaaan! The clouds seem very evil! Dun dun dun~!"

Fran grabbed the coconut horn out of Kiki's other hand. "If you insist..."

Kiki dragged Fran to her part of the island where she had constructed a makeshift shack that was holding up rather well for a few years of use.

The storm inched closer to the island's shore; the wind was swiftly picking up. The stars became concealed by the clouds.

"Here we are!" exclaimed Kiki stopping in front of her place. "It'll protect you from the stooooooooorm!" She opened the barely-attached door and motioned for Fran to enter. "My bestest friend goes in first!"

Fran hesitantly walked in. Kiki wasn't going to take no for an answer, and she was awfully insistent that she got away from the approaching storm. "Kiki, I can't see anything."

"Don't you have a flashlight?"

"I did until you used it to crack open a coconut."

Kiki covered her mouth embarrassed. "Anyway, wanna play a card game?!"

Not amused, Fran decided to lay down and try to tune Kiki out.

"Go fish! Let's play go fiiiiiiiiiish, Fraaan!"

"Kiki, we've already played that twice today. Now let me just sleep..."

Pouting, she sat on the ground next to Fran. "Want me to sing you a lullaby?!"

"NO!"

"Okay..." Giggling, she played with Fran's hair. "Your hair needs brushed, Fraaaaaaaan! Can I brush it?!"

Did words not have meaning anymore? Fran felt around the ground to find an object to knock herself out with. She really couldn't handle dealing with her any longer. "No..."

"Fraaan, why do you always want to knock yourself out?" For once, her tone was serious unlike the annoying high-pitched squeal she frequently yelped out.

"Because I can't stand you! I loathe you!" There was a delayed reaction to Kiki's odd tone.

Kiki frowned as she said softly, "I knew that..." She just really adored Fran, but she never knew exactly how to showcase that.

"I'm just going to go to sleep. Don't wake me up unless it's an emergency or a rescue opportunity."

"Good night, Fran..."


	2. chapter 2

Fran opened her eyes as she drifted out of sleep. This spot was a lot shadier than usual. Oh, right. She was stuck in whatever Kiki lived in!

Speaking of Kiki, where was she?

From the distance was a yodel as it got closer and closer. "Fraaaaaaaaaaaan! Wakey wakey! Rise and shiiiiiiiine!" There she was. There was Kiki.

"Ugh..." She was never in the mood for putting up with Kiki, but she's had to learn to cope to some degree. Unfortunately, Fran had a low threshold of tolerance.

Kiki stammered into the hut with a big fish. "I caught us a fish!"

"How many times have we had fish or coconuts within the past, oh I don't know, fourish years?"

"Ooh, Fran! I think I got enough for the both of us for breakfast _and_ lunch! What time is it?!"

What time was it?! "You sat on my watch three years ago. I don't know!"

She giggled innocently drifting back to that moment. "I told you I'm sorry!" What could she sing about this time? "Sit on your watch! I'm gonna sit on your watch~!"

Fran immediately glanced around to find something good enough to cause some blunt force trauma. Blunt force trauma, deep down, that she could never actually follow through with. She _knew_ she wasn't able to survive all these years on the island without Kiki's expertise, but the thought of finally ending the annoyance was _satisfying_.

"Fraaan~!"

Welp. As always, she couldn't actually do the deed. "What?"

Kiki swept down and pinched the other's cheek. In the process, she slapped her legs with the fish and nearly fell down right on top of Fran. "Chuuubby cheeks! They're cute, Fran!"

Good thing she had a permanent sunburn to hide any sign of flushing. "You know, Kiki?"

"What?"

"I can't stand you!"

"Let's go outside and cook some fish! Some sunshine will cheer you up!"

Getting off the ground, Fran rolled her eyes. "Whatever helps you sleep at night..."

The weather on the island was almost _always_ the same. Sunny, warm temperatures, and very pleasing to the eyes. In Kiki's eyes, it was one of the best things ever. For Fran, it was a reminder of how she was far from civilization.

Kiki, hauling some wood, was starting to prepare the fire to cook the fish. "Wanna cook the fish, Fran?! Wait! Fish Fran! That sounds like fresh friend! Fraaaaaaaaan, you're my fresh friend!"

"How fresh does, I don't know, four years seem to you?"

What a buzzkill. "Wanna cook, Fran?!" Kiki was always sad when Fran focused on a less irrelevant thing she was saying.

"Fine..."

"Yay! We can flavor it with coconut!" They had a difficult time finding plants to flavor the few meals they were able to make on the island.

"If you didn't piss off the natives, maybe we could actually eat more than fish, seaweed, coconuts, and the occasional berries!"

"I didn't want to be sacrificed to their sacred hamster! I have too much to live for!"

"Like what?"

"Being on this island with you forever and ever and ever~!"

"If you don't-" Fran went over to Kiki and cupped her hand over her mouth.

"Mmm! Mmm!" It was arduous to decipher her continued singing as she inched herself closer to Fran. Raising an eyebrow, Kiki attempted to give a pleading look.

Fran removed her hand and felt a twinge of guilt. "Kiki, I know you mean well, but it's just difficult having to hear the same song over and over..."

"Forget the song! Let's make tomorrow Fran's day!" Kiki smiled cheekily. "We can spend the day doing whatever you want!"

"Whatever I want..." Fran pondered briefly before responding, "Deal."

"Yay!"

She was going to have to use the remainder of the day to think about _how_ she wanted to spend tomorrow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uninspired chapter name as I always get them from songs


	3. pretty please

For once, Fran woke up feeling surprisingly refreshed. It might've been that she was able to boss around Kiki all day. Maybe she actually woke up on the right side of the tree for once. Whatever it was, she was far more jubilant than usual. This was going to be such a good day! She hadn't been this excited in a while.

"Kiki!" she called out. That should summon her; it typically didn't take too much for her to make an appearance.

Movement was made from afar. Ruffling of leaves and the sound of a certain pair of footsteps. See? That didn't take long at all. Between the branches and vines were two distinct pigtails.

Kiki jumped out from behind some vines with a coconut in hand. "Morning, Fraaaan! I got you a coconut!"

Smiling, Fran asked, "What are ya going to do with it?"

"Awww, I see Fran woke up on the right side of the tree for once! I can make you something to drink. Maybe a matching cocohorn?!"

"Some coconut milk might be refreshing actually..."

Kiki clapped her hands as she proceeded to pull out one of many makeshift clubs to whack the coconut with. Hitting the coconut, it immediately cracked in half and she saved as much of the milk as she could before handing the filled-half of the coconut to Fran. "Here ya go! What do you wanna do today, Fraaaaan?!"

"I was thinking that we could have some fun. Play hide and go seek or something. Maybe we can finally figure out that crossword!"

"Yay! I'll go fetch the crossword!" Kiki started digging through some leaves until she found it. "What's a four letter word for moldy cheese?"

It was astounding how they still hadn't figured that out after years of being on the island.

Fran thought. For all she knew, the answer could have been in the back of her mind this entire time. "Bleu?"

"It fits, Fran, it fits! You solved it!" Throwing the crossword aside, she excitedly gave the other a tight hug.

"And I thought I didn't learn anything new about cheese..."

"What do you wanna do next?!"

"You're more familiar with the island than I am, what are some options?"

Kiki paced back and forth as her brain spewed all of the fun things they could do. "We could sing! Hike! Dance!" She loudly hummed while she continued brainstorming.

"I think you do enough singing for the both of us."

"We could go on adventure!"

"What kind of adventure?

"I don't know..."

"Okay, we can go on an adventure and see what we can find."

"Wee! Maybe we could play a game during it?!"

"I thought this was my day?"

Blushing, Kiki giggled as she responded, "It is! I'm just trying to help you thiiiiiiiiink! You always lie around all day!"

"You got a point... We can identify the plants on the island as a game."

"Sounds good to me, Fraaaaan! Let's goooooooooo!" Grabbing her hand, Kiki led Fran into the depths of the jungle surrounding them.


	4. inside out

"Kiki, are you sure it's safe through here?" Fran inquired as she felt her arms be continually hit by huge leaves.

Nodding, Kiki answered, "I've walked through a lot of this place! I can probably navigate it with my eyes closed! Wanna see?!"

Skeptical, she shook her head. "I'd prefer you to not have impaired vision..."

"Whatever you say, Fraaan!" Stopping in her place, Kiki kneeled down to pick some clivias.

"What are you doing?"

"Picking some flowers! Wanna sniff one?! You agreed to identify plants, Fraaan!"

Fran made an attempt to look over Kiki's shoulder before accidentally colliding into her forcing the both of them onto the ground. There was hardly any distance between them. "Kiki..?"

Her arm with the flowers wound up resting on Fran's side. Flushed and embarrassed, Kiki waved the clivias that were in her hand. "Aww, Fran, we're on the ground!"

"I know."

Wanting to tease Fran, she pressed her nose up against the other. Well, that was what she was attempting to do. What really happened was that Kiki accidentally pressed her lips against the other's.

Fran had a delayed reaction to what had just happened; she was internally freaking out and had no idea on how to process it. "Kiki, have you realized what you've done?!" There came the panic.

Being Kiki, she laughed it off. "It's just a kiss, Fraaaaaaaaaan!"

She pushed the other away and got up from the ground. Why was Kiki always so careless? "It may be just a kiss to you, but it isn't to me!"

They didn't know much about each other and it showed.

"Are we still going to have some fun, Fraaaaaaaan?!" Kiki asked as she sat up with a hopeful look on her countenance.

Fran shook her head. "No, I need to think in solitude." She walked away from the scene hoping that she wouldn't have to see Kiki's face for at least an hour.

Sometime later, Kiki stood over Fran waiting for her to wake up. It looked as if the other was really going through it with the dried tears on her cheeks. She may have had her sunglasses on, but it didn't obscure that she was crying earlier. Slowly, she placed her hand on the other's shoulder. "Fran..?" Was she asleep or ignoring her?

"I'm still thinking," she responded knowing she wouldn't be satisfied without an answer.

"You're just making me worried, Fran." Pouting, she found a spot beside the other's head and sat down. "Let's play therapy! I'll be the therapist!"

Fran was extremely skeptical of this proposal. "I'm not too sure about that." How could Kiki even make a good therapist? All she ever did was yell and squeal all day.

"How are you feeling?"

"Exasperated."

"Why?"

"What do you think, Kiki?"

"I didn't want to assume..." Gulping, she thought of another question. "What's something that makes you happy?"

"The joys of civilization. I don't even want to know how many episodes of L.A. Law I missed..."

"What makes you sad then?"

"Everything..."

This was getting too bleak for Kiki. "Put a smile on your face, Fraaan! It always helps me feel better!"

"That's easy for you to say."

She raised a finger only to put it down. That was easy for her to say. "Well..."

"What?"

"Nothing." Kiki was going to have to try to get into Fran's mind another day; there was too much hiding going on.

Fran took off her sunglasses. "You are going to leave me alone for the rest of the day, right?"

Reluctantly, she nodded. "Mhm..."

"See you later, Kiki."

"See ya, Fran..."


	5. too much

Kiki found herself afraid to talk to Fran. Why was her friend so upset over something so little? Accidents happen! Like the boat crash...

Oh. Right. Fran found everything to be Kiki's fault. Kiki this. Kiki that. Now, she possibly messed up any possibility of reaching some sort of common ground with Fran. Time to find some parchment to write her feelings out on. If nothing else, she could write Didi a letter so she can come visit the island again.

"Kiki, what would Kiki do in a situation like this?" she asked herself as she spun her pen around like a baton.

Fran was surprisingly disappointed to not have been woken up from her slumber. She had gotten used to that routine. Guess she better make sure Kiki didn't get stung by a jellyfish or something...

"Kiki?!" she yelled out. "KIKI!" There weren't many places to hide on this island, so she had to be somewhere.

Was Fran actually looking for her? Kiki didn't know what to think about that, especially knowing how the other had the tendency to avoid her and her domain. Looking around, a part of her hesitated to even show herself, but at the same time, she knew she couldn't try to avoid Fran for too long. Making her presence visible, she waved.

It was reassuring to know that Kiki was still with the living. "I thought you were going to wake me up? Like usual?"

Kiki didn't know how to respond. "I-" How was she going to phrase this? "I thought you were angry at me..."

"You're the only way I know what time of the day it is."

"You're not angry at me..?"

"I'll admit, I responded a bit too rash. I was just surprised, and I didn't know how to handle it."

Inching closer to Fran, Kiki looked confused. "How did you..?"

"I have to process things by myself." Not like she's had a choice in that matter for however many years.

"Oh." Kiki was having a difficult time accepting that. "Why's that?"

What kind of question was that? "We've been on this island for about five years, you're the only other person around. Naturally, I'd want alone time."

She nodded knowing that was the hard truth. "You're not angry then..?"

"No."

"Weee!" That made her feel better. "Wanna do something, Fran?!"

"Oh, yeah, sure."

"Let's go for a swim!" Not even taking a moment to think, Kiki stripped of her clothing and ran off towards the surrounding waters.

Fran blinked and picked up the crop top and shorts. "I'll just hold onto these then.." She didn't trust some of the flora on the island to not have any poison. Following after the other, she found a rock to sit on. She was a bit too insecure to be as liberated as Kiki was.

Having expected the other to join her, Kiki looked confused as she observed her surroundings and spot Fran on the shore. "Fraaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaan!" she yelled out wondering if she would hear.

"What?!"

"I thought you were going to join meeee!"

"I'm not sure if I want to."

"Why?"

How could she answer this without potentially hurting Kiki's feelings? "I want to make sure neither of us drowns." That was a total lie. She really didn't know why she wasn't willing to join her in swimming.

"Don't be silly, Fran!" How dismissive. "You could use the water!"

"I'll be fine."

She stubbornly frowned and decided to make her way out of the water. With no towels, Kiki shook as much water off of her body as possible. "No swim?"

"Not right now, no. You look down in the dumps."

"You're giving me too many mixed signals!"

Not wanting to know where this was going, Fran handed Kiki her clothes back. "I have to go. Something suddenly came up."

Kiki stood as she watched Fran go further inland. Guess she'll find out another day.


	6. stfu!

It was yet another picturesque morning. Few knew of the island, so it was a sight that needed to be seen to be believed.

Kiki, trying to keep the normalcy she enjoyed, sneaked behind the tree Fran slept on and blew loudly out of her cocohorn. "Riiiise and shiiine, Fraaan!" She smiled as she watched the other wake up.

"I think I've become desensitized to your incessant cocohorn blowing." Taking off her sunglasses, Fran rubbed her eyes as her vision adjusted to the monotonous scenery around her.

"Did ya sleep well last night, Fran?! Did ya?!"

She shrugged and slightly waved her hand. "Eh?"

Kiki frowned. "It's a yes or no question, silly!"

"Do you have to interrogate me like this every morning?"

"You're still giving me mixed signals!" She put her hand on her hip. "Do you like me or not, Fraaan?!"

How was she going to put this? "I tolerate you."

"Tolerate?! Is that it?!"

"I don't like discussing my feelings. For the past however many years we've been on this island, you've always tried to know my business. Why do you never give me space like I do towards you?"

That was true. Kiki wawsnt always the most self-aware. "I don't like quiet. I don't like being lonely. Before we ended up on this island, I had lots of friends! I was prom queen!"

"Are you turning this into an opportunity to brag?!" Was Kiki out of her mind? "It's your fault that we're even on this island!"

"Your boat was right there! You think I could've helped it?!"

"Yes."

Well, she did somewhat crash intentionally. It was too late to try and steer around. "At least we aren't dead!" A smile erupted on Kiki's face. "Aren't we lucky, Fraaan?"

"Maybe you are! I'm not!"

"What do I have to do to be your friend?"

Fran raised an eyebrow. "You think we have the chance of becoming friends?"

"Why wouldn't I?"

"I think you need to learn to respect my space and boundaries. It was established when we first got stranded here!"

Was it? Oh, yes. Kiki could visualize it now. "When you still looked like a ghost! I remember, Fran, I do!"

"Do you remember what I said?"

"Uhh..." Placing her hand on top of her head, she attempted to think back towards that fateful day.

"Is that a no?"

"You said, uh, something about how you immediately wanted off the island. The rest of it was just white noise to me!"

That was a no. "Kiki! Why don't you remember that?!"

"Because I never thought I'd care about you so much!"

Fran was at a loss. Sure, she appeared to be having a moment of honesty, but could the sincerity be trusted? Was the other even sincere? Not knowing how to respond, she turned away and crossed her arms. It was the best way to avoid reality of any kind without knocking herself out. "Quiet."

Kiki attempted to rest her head on Fran's shoulder only to be shoved away. "Fran..?"

"I need space."

She watched Fran run off to a different part of the island forcing herself to let her thoughts simmer.


	7. two time loser

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fran centered

Fran wished she had a diary. She wished she could express what's going on in that mind of hers. She wished she could finally get off this godforsaken island. Normalcy. She craved normalcy. She needed normalcy.

Watching the waves recede and approach, Fran pondered recemt events. She's obviously been in a panic. Everything just felt difficult. Coping was barely in her vocabulary, and she just didn't know how to go about things.

Of course Kiki was an extrovert. Of course Kiki was popular. Of course Kiki was prom queen.

They were total polar opposites; it was a wonder how they've survived thus far without killing one another.

Kiki was everything she wasn't. She didn't know if she wanted to be her or the people who were around her. On this island, they were the only ones in each other's orbit. It got suffocating fast.

She spent too much time not being annoyed by Kiki in her thoughts. It was if she was her own company. Fran considered herself alone.

Did her family even care about her disappearance? Did they even know if she was still alive? At times, it felt as if all her attempts to communicate were all for nothing. Kiki's messages seemed to always pan out. Hers probably has never washed ashore.

Her previous lifestyle couldn't have prepared her for this. The first major breath of independence that only led to her fate of never being able to get off the island.

How would Fran's upbringing be described as in one word? Conservative. Modest. Repressed. Make that three words.

There were times when she'd contemplate. That was more often than she'd like, but she couldn't help it. There just wasn't much to do to get her out of her thoughts.

Kiki. How did she feel about Kiki? Fran was conflicted. She did ensure their survival, but she also had the most annoying squeal. She was nice, but far too bubbly that it felt suffocating. There was no escape from Kiki.

Fran couldn't dare confront the occasional butterflies. She'd be in denial over its meaning. It took a lot of work to try and assert some agency on this island. If there was one thing she detested, it was the feeling of being trapped.

Some nights, she'd lie by her chosen tree thinking about Kiki. Some nights, she'd think about her family. Some nights, she thought about sinning.

This was a sticky predicament for Fran. If the fateful boat crash had never occurred, she'd be living a normal life.

This wasn't normal.

There were times she prayed for guidance only to never receive any. Fran was questioning her faith.

This was one of those times.

"God, if you're there, why am I unable to get off this island?"


	8. say so

Kiki had been wondering where Fran went. How could she have gotten upset so quickly? She was being willfully obtuse.

"Fraaaaan?! Where are you?!" she criee out as she grabbed her cocohorn. "If you don't come out, I'm gonna blow my cocohorn!"

She waited. Five seconds. Kiki was the impatient type. Blowing into her cocohorn loudly, her other arm swayed about uncontrollably.

"Fran..?"

Was this one of those moments when Fran needed space? Kiki didn't like that! She desired company, but she was going to have to wait it out for her.

Kiki crossed her arms and pouted. What could she do now? She couldn't stand the thought of being alone.

Time to find Fran.

She blazed through a bunch of leaves until she found Fran in a praying position. Fran, slightly hesitant, approached her from behind. "Boo!"

Fran was startled and held onto her chest when she turned and saw Kiki. "Kiki! Why did you do that?!"

"I was worried! And I felt like it!"

Bemused, she responded, "That certainly didn't help."

"You've been avoiding me! I don't like being lonely!"

"I thought we went over this?"

"I like your company." It was always odd when Kiki's tone wasn't as exaggerated. "Why don't we find some common ground?"

"What kind of common ground would we have other than sand?"

"Won't know 'til we find out!"

Unfortunately, Kiki was right. "I suppose... Just don't talk over me!"

"Yay!" She took a hold of one of Fran's wrist. "Let's take a seat on the tree!"

Fran sat down hoping that this wasn't going to turn into a Kiki woe is me show. "How are we going to start this?" She wanted to get an idea of how quickly she'd lose hope.

"Hmm... Oh! I know! We could share fun facts about each other?"

"Fun facts?" Her faith plummeted quickly.

"Let's see! When I was two, I had a dog named Puddles!"

Fran immediately stuck her hand over Kiki's mouth. "That was not what I was anticipating when you said you wanted to find common ground."

"Sorry!" she squeaked barely comprehensible.

"How about I get a chance to say my word and you can zip your mouth?"

Kiki nodded. What could Fran have to say?! "Okay!"

Removing her hand from the other's face, Fran took a deep breath and thought about what she had to say. "I'm the exact opposite of you." She had assumed that this entire time. "I'm thankful you've been able to keep us surviving on this island, but it feels like everything has to be steered by you."

"Okay!"

"Right..." How was she going to follow up now? "I like you, but I can't stand you. We both have to learn how to get along with one another. Respect my personal space when I need it."

"You like me?! Fran likes me!"

Fran sighed. Was that the only thing she took from it? "I guess we'll have this discussion another time."

Kiki jumped up looked around for a flower to dance around with. "Fran likes me! Fran likes me!"

Deciding to not want to hear the other sing for however long, Fran decided to grab a coconut and "knock" herself out. Her sanity was going to be thankful.


	9. nine. in my dreams

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am totally aware it took me months to post a chapter. The pandemic was majorly affecting me. I'm hoping having some normalcy from college will get me to update more frequently.

Singing. All that could be heard was singing. Was it really singing if it sounded more like yelling?

"Will she ever shut up?" Fran thought and asked herself that daily. It felt as if she was never able to escape it. Just like her inability to get off this damn island.

Kiki was easily excitable. To her, this felt like the best day in a long time. "Fran liiiiiiiiiiikes me!"

For once, she was going to have to go through with it. Grabbing a lone cocohorn, Fran went towards Kiki and blew it right by her ear. "Will you please stop singing for once?! I know you're happy, but that's all you ever do!"

Screaming, she breathed heavily until she realized it was just Fran. "I can't help my good mood!"

"But you can help your singing. Do you know how I feel now?"

"Sorta? I just thought singing would make you not so grumpy! It always makes my day when you actually smile!"

Did she really not smile that often? "Kiki, when it comes to singing, I don't like it to be loud to the point of bursting my eardrums." Not like they had many options for music... "Hey, Kiki?"

"Yeah, Fran?!"

"How about instead of singing loudly and tone deaf, you could bang some seashells together instead?"

Kiki nodded excitedly. "Anything for you, Fraaaaaaaaan!" She tightly wrapped the other in a hug before she went hunting for some seashells.

Finally, she had some peace and quiet! Sighing with relief, Fran decided she was going to rest in the meantime. Hopefully it wouldn't be disturbed like it typically was...

She slowly closed her eyes and felt the soothing breeze hit her body. At least there was some relaxation on this island.

Her mind drifted off as she got comfortable. Kiki was in her mind no matter how much she couldn't stand it. Sure, her relatives and friends popped in from time to time in her dreams, but the other person was almost always Kiki.

A house with a picket fence. The all-American dream. Two kids at school and a cat. There was no husband to be found. Instead, Fran was the breadwinner and Kiki played housewife. Coming to her after work seeing her draped in-

"Fraaan! I'm back!" greeted Kiki announcing her presence as she clanged a couple of seashells together. "I hope I didn't disturb your sleep too badly!"

Fran couldn't confront her id. She couldn't. "I didn't think you'd be back so soon."

Kiki giggled as she dropped the shells and jumped onto Fran. "How about we play leap frog?!"

"What about the shells?"

"I can always find more!"

Feeling a bit too flustered, she managed to push Kiki off. "I'm going to go back to sleep. I had a good dream of not being stuck on this island with you!"

"I'll wait for you to wake up! Maybe I can find us some berries! Or I could go fish with my bare hands!"

"Just don't disturb me." Grabbing her shades, Fran started drifting back into a blissful slumber.


	10. waitin' for the night

Smoke. It smelled of smoke. Dinner as usual. With no actual timekeeping, their idea of hours was aimless. All they had was whether the sun was rising or setting. Clearly, they hadn't figured out how to create a sundial yet. The one they had, just like the watch, got broken on accident by Kiki.

"Kiki, how did you figure out that this island had cloves?" Fran inquired as she attempted to get a whiff of the fish that was being cooked.

"Oh, weeeeeell, I found a book on spices and how to identify them!" With a stick, she tried to quickly flip the fish over before potentially causing a fire. "It was on the boat when we wrecked!"

How convenient was it that she knew how to survive on this island for years? "You know what I miss? Actually measuring ingredients. Now it's all hit-or-miss!"

"It's edible!"

"I get that, but I miss consistency..."

"Fish every night isn't consistent?"

"You occasionally manage to track down a boar. That's about it."

Kiki couldn't come up with a rebuttal. So instead, she asked, "Fraaaaaaaan, can you hand me some of those branch thingies I gave you?"

"You don't even know what these are called?"

"I didn't get that far in the book, silly!"

She was becoming more hopeless by the minute. "Where is the book so I could look it up for ya?" It would give her a false sense of usefulness for once.

"On the other side of the island!"

Shaking her head, Fran got up. "We'll see about that. I just hope it isn't charred by the time I return." She grabbed a wider branch to serve as a makeshift torch. "I'll be back."

"Okay! See ya, Fran!" Kiki's expression quickly soured. Was her cooking really that bad? She figured she was doing her best considering how they were without a lot of the ingredients they could find back in the United States.

Kiki tried her hardest to not char the fish one bit. That would be arduous, but she wanted to be praised. It was rare when Fran ever praised her to begin with. She rarely had anything positive to say other than Thanks for keeping me alive. What gives? To try and past the time, she began whistling. She was no Snow White, but at least it was something musical that she was good at.

Focus was getting difficult. She didn't want to make dinner inedible, yet it was if her brain wanted to do just that. "Mean brain go away!" Why couldn't she be not as scatterbrained as Fran? Even though she knew her way around the most, it felt as if she lacked discipline. There wasn't much for her to have had to work for in life. Okay, the fish looked and smelled cooked enough. Time to somewhat douse the fire. Where was Fran to put it out for her?

"I found the book. I think it has water damage." Fran made her way back over to Kiki and the fire before plopping the book onto the sand. "Looks like you're struggling."

"Wa. Ter. Please."

Fran grabbed the bucket of water and threw it at the pit as Kiki lifted up the pan. "Is it done?"

"Yep! The flavor isn't even, but it smells good!"

"As long as it doesn't make me curse at how we have no modern medicine..."

"It should be fine, Fran!"

"I hope."

Well, at least Kiki couldn't envy the other's cynicism. "Smells yummy, I can't wait for it to be in my tummy!"

Fran didn't respond to the singing. "If you burn yourself, just try to not get it a third degree..."

"How come?!"

"We hardly have any bandages, our antibiotics have either been used up or expired, and they're painful?" What more of an explanation did she need?

She had a point. "I guess you're right. Just pour really cold water on me!"

"We live on a tropical island. It's never cold enough for that."

"We could make it be!"

Shrugging, she glanced around the island. Sand. Palm trees. Bugs. "With what? Fish bones?"

"Um... What are the average lows?!"

How did she handle her stupidity sometimes? "How about we just eat? We can argue about the obvious any other time!"

They were behaving like an old married couple, and they didn't even realize it.

Kiki shook her head figuring that would be the better thing to do. "Aren't you glad we have some forks, Fran?!"

"It's decided. After this, I'm going to sleep," said Fran not bothering to answer the other's question.

"Awww, why?"

"Your shrieks give me headaches, and this evening felt like an eternity."

It was getting darker and darker. "I'll make sure the boogie monster doesn't get you!"

"I think I will be fine." Her chronically burnt skin felt nothing as she tore the cooked fish in half. "Good night, Kiki."

Kiki kept in place feeling puzzled. Why was Fran avoiding her like that? "Good night..."


	11. eleven. sick of the sun

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Meant to put this up a few days ago, but Christmas stuff distracted me. I should get better at regularly updating.

It was one of those rare moments when the sky was mostly cloudy. To Fran, this was a relief as she had run out of sun block years ago. She really had no way of not getting more burns on top of her already burnt skin except for hoping that she had ample shade.

This bummed Kiki out. She thrived with sunlight and being on the island effectively cured her of seasonal affective disorder. However, she wasn't going to let it stop her from doing what she did best. "Fraaaaan!" It was like clockwork. "I found a starfish! Wanna touch it?"

Fran was basking in the barely-there sunlight when she was jolted awake by Kiki's very unnecessary squeals. "Kiki..." She sighed as she took off her sunglasses. "Where did you find it?"

"It washed upon the shore, Fran!"

"Doesn't mean you can just pick it up! What if it was a jellyfish? We can't cure jellyfish stings. We don't have the resources!"

Kiki shrugged it off. "We've been on this island for 5 years, it'll be fine, Fran!" She held the starfish by two of its arms and lightly swayed it around. "Look! It's dancing!"

Fran usurped the creature from her hands and put it right back in the sea. Afterwards, she gave a knowing glance and crossed her arms. "Come on, Kiki! I get hunting for food, but the poor thing was dehydrated!"

"It's funny hearing you be so empathetic, Fran!" Kiki went up to the other woman and lightly pinched her cheek before sticking her tongue out. "It's so adorable!" Why was Fran never like that to her?

"Look, I may be irritated by you just about every hour of the day, but that doesn't mean I don't care about you." Weren't all the times she never gone through with attempted murder via coconut or strangulation good enough proof of that? It wasn't like she had too many healthy options to get those emotions out without potentially jeopardizing their survival.

Kiki skipped around then hugged Fran before being pushed off. "No hug?" She pouted. "You're just so cuddly, Fraaan!"

"No hug." That was just about the only boundary she could easily establish on this island where it was just the two of them.

"Awww!" Kiki pouted as she twirled one of her stray strands of hair. "Fiiine, Fraaaan! You're allowed to hug me! I like hugs!"

"What makes you think I'd want to hug you?"

With a stupid grin on her face, Kiki shrugged. "Oh, I don't know, Fran! Hmmm... Because I'm your bestest friend!"

"No."

That was blunt. Kiki frowned before quickly returning to her typical spunk. "But I like you so much, Fran!"

"Why do you always have to say my name, Kiki?"

"Because I like saying it, silly!"

To contribute to Fran's dismay, the sun began overwhelming the clouds. It appeared Kiki's battery was charging back up. Sighing, she walked over to one of the fallen trees and sat down.

Being Kiki, she joined Fran and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. A devious smirk appeared on her face. "Want me to sing, Fran?!"

"About how we'll be on this island forever?" It was a major cliche at this point. Fran shook her head as she tried to block the sun with her hand. "Why don't you come up with a new song?"

"Oooh, I like the way you think!" She placed her chin on the palm of her hand and pondered. It was imperative to come up with a good melody. "Fran, Fran, Fran! It's all about Fran!" Kiki began in a shoddy sing-sang voice. "Fran, Fran, Fran, always with a tan!"

"I'm not sure if a permanent sunburn is a tan..."

"Fran, Fran, Fran! I'm her biggest fan!"

She wouldn't admit it, but she was flattered. "Why me as the subject?"

"Because you're my bestest friend, Fran! Duh!"

Fran couldn't have asked for a better answer. Briefly, she smiled.

Maybe the sun wasn't that bad.


	12. twelve. only in my dreams

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another dream related chapter? Another dream related chapter

Fran dreamt and slept nicely that night: it was a nice change of pace, especially as she typically kept one eye open in anticipation for Kiki. For once, the sounds of the ocean were totally calming and soothing. Just what she needed. The sun was rising, so naturally she managed to wake herself up without Kiki's intervention. She was in a very good mood! Removing her sunglasses, Fran stretched and saw Kiki slumbering right beside her. They were still clothed, and there was a lack of alcohol to thank for that.

When did Kiki join her by the tree? Certainly Fran would've remembered her getting near her! She found herself stuck between a rock and a hard place as she didn't want to wake Kiki up and hear her early morning squeals. Fran also felt as if she needed to run off for a bit. There was no way she shared her makeshift bed with Kiki!

Kiki was sleeping quite comfortably, especially with the pile of leaves she was using as a pillow. She had decided to join Fran during her slumber as she appeared quite lonely. It just seemed like the right thing to do! Of course, they were moments when she cuddled up close and couldn't keep her hands off her. Since Fran was very much asleep during it all, she couldn't see the harm.

Slowly, Fran attempted to inch away so she could at least enjoy some peace and quiet before Kiki had to make her yelps. It wasn't working out as once she began to make some movement, Kiki had turned around to wrap an arm at her waist. Panicking slightly, Fran tried to lightly grasp Kiki's arm to maneuver it away. No. There was no way she was going to cuddle with Kiki. No way.

Kiki's dreams were a bit crazy, but Fran was always involved. This time, the two of them were out on an adventure together enjoying the fresh air and outdoors; the location was also quite the contrast to the island that served as their home.

Their hands were linked together with Kiki taking the lead. Although the trek wasn't grand, it was a welcomed change to the sandy, salty shores they were accustomed to. It was refreshing to see the squirrels scramble for food as they bounced through the trees. It was a lovely location for a picnic!

To symbolize their island union was s picnic basket made from coconuts. It held surprisingly well. In the basket was a wine bottle and some nibbles to enjoy in the shade.

Kiki was on one end of the picnic blanket snacking on a pastry as Fran poured wine into each of their glasses. It was an effortlessly romantic mood. Then, their heads moved towards one another and-

Finally, Fran managed to scoot herself away from Kiki. Taking a deep breath, she decided to go a few feet away hoping that Kiki wouldn't wake up that very moment. She didn't want to go deaf immediately. A light sigh of relief escaped when it appeared that Kiki hadn't been too disturbed.

She would prove to be wrong as Kiki woke from her sleep and yawned. Kiki looked around confused seeing Fran away. She didn't even get to see the satisfying ending to her dream! "Oh, Fraaaaan!"


	13. thirteen. flightless bird

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> After 84 years, I finally post an update. I should try and be more often with my updates, but with an extremely niche ship/fandom, there's virtually no feedback.

Shit. Kiki had quickly caught onto the fact that she and Fran were no longer "cuddling." Not knowing what else to do, Fran hid behind one of the trees as if she wouldn't be found with ease.

"I know you're around here somewhere!" Kiki began skipping around trying to find Fran. "Oooh, are we playing hide and go seek? I didn't even get to count, silly!" She giggled loudly. "Okay, I'll count!"

Fran did try to camouflage the best she could. It wasn't too hard; she only looked like a bipedal lobster which made it a challenge. Just don't make any-

"I found you!"

Cracking a forced smile, Fran glanced down at the ground. Same as always. "Kiki, do you ever know how to take a hint?"

"Why should I?! You're my bestest friend!" Kiki tried to wrap herself around Fran's shoulders and was reluctantly pushed off. "Why do you do this, Fraaaaaan? I know you like me!"

"You know I don't like confronting my feelings!"

She raised an eyebrow as her eyes widened. "What do you mean, Fran?"

"Nothing. Nothing at all." Fran needed to find somewhere to hide. That was made near impossible on this island that was just the two of them. She fidgeted the slowly deteriorating sleeves of her button-up shirt. Why couldn't Kiki understand her frustrations? Why was she always so insistent on knowing anything?

Kiki couldn't help her curiosity. Why wouldn't Fran stop being so secretive? Personally, Kiki felt as if she's been an open book for the past however many years on this island. It seemed as if she just didn't know a lot about her bestest friend. "Oooh, Fran! What if I say how I'm feeling, and you can say how you're feeling?!"

"Kiki-"

"I'm feeling amazing knowing that I'm so close to my bestest friend! I'm lucky to have you, Fran!" Despite her cheerful exterior, she did feel concerned. It seemed as if Fran bottled up literally everything! "It gets cold sometimes..."

"We're on a tropical island near the equator." How cold could it get? "I feel confused and bothered!" With that, Fran attempted to build some distance between them. "Why do you think I keep pushing you off me?"

Kiki briefly frowned, shook her head, and shrugged. "Oh, I don't know, Fran..." A smirk quickly showed up on her face. "I can tell you enjoy them though, even if you don't want to admit it!" She began giggling completely unashamed. In a teasing manner, Kiki also puckered up her lips before being shoved away.

"Get your lips away from me! I don't want to kiss you!" Well, a part of her did. She just didn't want to give into the thoughts she felt as if were plaguing her. It had to be a side effect of having little human interaction outside of Kiki, it just had to be.

Kiki sighed and crossed her arms. Was she really that bad at taking a hint? The color from her face drained slightly. She thought she knew Fran very well when it came to her moods and thought process. Was that not the case? "I'm only giving you a hard time!" She was just trying to save the train wreck of a conversation at this point.

Fran wasn't having it. She decided she was going to return to her homely downed tree and attempt to take a long nap. Sure, she'd deal with the feelings in her dreams, but at least it wouldn't be her conscious reality. Inching away from Kiki, she then bolted away to find her tree. She was going to try to close her eyes and ignore without the aid of a coconut or her makeshift bat or the other various heavy objects she had hiding within the tall grasses that filled parts of the island. Fran made it to her destination, sat down, and closed her eyes.

It was a few hours later when she was awoken by the smell of smoke. What was it..? Fran slowly opened her eyes and yawned. In the distance was Kiki attempting to cook some fish, some of which were obviously engaging in a struggle against her.

"Just go in the pot, fishyyy!" Kiki whined loudly as the one in her hand flopped all around. The fish she was already cooking were beginning to burn. "Charred fish for dinner, Fraaaan!" Despite the chaos around her, it didn't take long for her to figure out that Fran was awake. She was losing control of the situation.

Fran got up to see the commotion. So much for Kiki knowing everything about the island...

The smoke from the fire began to consume Kiki. It was a good thing the fresh, open air provided natural ventilation or this could go awfully. A shriek came out of her as the fish finally fell out of her hands onto the sand. Quickly, she attended the burning fish and attempted to flip it in the pan. "It's stuck!" Panicking, she ended up throwing it into the ocean.

"Nice going, Kiki," stated Fran rolling her eyes. "Now what are we supposed to do for dinner?"

"I can't help how fish act in my hands, Fran!" On that note, she went into the ocean to grab the cooled down pan. "It didn't go too far, Fran!" Kiki was excited about that prospect.

Fran simply raised an eyebrow. Why did she want to kiss her so much at this very moment? "I think we could do better than having burnt fish for the fifth time this week..." She couldn't even accurately say if it was a week. All these years on this very island caused time to blend into itself. They didn't even have a current calendar to work with!

"Like what, Fran?!"

"We could find a boar..."

A smirk grew on Kiki's face. She was excited! "We can do it together!"

"Yeah..." Although she tried not to, a small smile peaked through Fran's stoic facade.


	14. fourteen. lost in your eyes

Fran hadn't expected to enjoy the hunt as much as she did. In fact, she managed to not have one single complaint the entire time. That absolutely delighted Kiki as, for once, Fran seemed to genuinely be enjoying herself. It was very apparent to her, after all this time, that Fran was unhappy as besides being stuck on the island, she had nothing to do!

The time they spent slaughtering the animal actually went by quite quickly. Fish and insects were plentiful, so being able to actually get a boar for a meal was always treated as a major spectacle. They couldn't do much, but they were able to work with what they had. It was pure luck that they had a functioning card table. However, they rarely actually used it properly due to laziness. They also didn't want to constantly go through the hassle of pulling it out every time they ate, thus it ended up being something for special dinners. This was one of those situations.

Kiki, being Kiki, decorated the corners and center of the table with some seashells she had gathered. They were very pretty! It was always awkward when one housed a small crab as she was never too bothered to thoroughly check before taking them. "You wanna know what I wish we had, Fraan?!"

"What?" She was trying to act natural. Well, Fran was also attempting to behave as she usually did.

"Some candles!"

Candles? "Don't we get plenty of light from the moon?" Besides, Fran was quite sure whatever candles that might've survived the wreck had swept away years ago.

"I like blowing flames out, Fran!"

"Do you realize how many times I set my irritation aside to make sure you didn't melt your face off?" A part of her knew, deep down, that the way she acted towards Kiki was just her overcompensating. It was always so much easier for her to ignore, forget, and be angsty rather than actually confront some of her thoughts and feelings. In a way, those tendencies served as a defense mechanism.

Kiki shrugged with a clueless look on her face. "Um, 57 times?" She did enjoy keeping track of just about anything even with a lack of reference. She only needed to hope that her educated guesses were accurate...

"..."

Following their feast of the boar, they ended up sitting against a downed tree glancing at the stars together. It hadn't hit either of them yet how pecul this situation was, yet they were both comfortable and content where they were. Were they finally learning to co exist following all of those years of one-sided bickering?

Fran never really gave herself the chance to really take in the tropical island in which they lived. She was far too used to the comforts of modern civilization. In fact, it made her so uncomfortable to be without electricity. The one material object Fran had found herself missing most was a fan. Her best bet for cold air was the wind and the use of big leaves. "Do you feel the soft breeze?" It felt nice. Contentedness was an odd emotion for her to be experiencing given the circumstances.

"Of course I do, Fraaan! It's chilly!" Anything below blazing humidity seemed cold to Kiki nowadays. It was as if she had gitteb acclimated to a different climate.

"You're not even shivering!"

"Still chilly!"

Not too many words were exchanged between the two following that. It wasn't on purpose either; it seemed natural for their curre situation. Unconsciously, they had managed to scoot slightly closer to each other.

Fran glanced over at Kiki before returning her gaze towards the night sky. It actually warmed her heart a bit that everything around them always made the other happy. She just wished she was able to relate. Would it be easier for them to get along had they not ended up stranded on an island? Would she have actually liked Kiki if she wasn't the only other person around? Would she stop lying to herself had it not been for that boat crash? "Maybe I should take a few pointers from you."

Kiki raised an eyebrow. What a weird thing for Fran to say! "What do you mean, silly?"

"I mean that maybe I should try to be more positive. For example, I haven't had to spend years alone on this island. I would've gone insane..."

"I thought I was the insane one?!"

"You are." Her eyes went back to the sky. "Do you think we'll manage to land elsewhere outside of the moon?"

Kiki held her chin and hummed. "Hmm, I don't know, Fran! What do you think Uranus looks like?!"

Was that supposed to be a joke? "I don't know... I guess I'm not trying to avoid my thoughts for once. They've been almost nonstop since we ended up here."

"Why you so serious, Fraaan?"

"Are you even listening to me, Kiki?!"

Kiki crossed her arms and looked down to her right as a resuk of the position she was lying in. "It's just-"

"What?"

"Nevermind..."

Fran reached for Kiki's hand and grabbed it. What was she even doing? Hm, despite the conditions they've lived with on the island, her hand had remained soft. Her eyes reached Kiki's. Against her better judgment, she pulled her into a kiss.

Kiki really wondered what went through Fran's brain a lot of the time. Even though she acted like it, she wasn't totally obtuse. She was taken by surprise. "Fran..." How weird! In the past, Fran didn't even want to be touched; now she was doing the touching.

Pulling back, Fran's hand was obviously becoming drenched with sweat. It didn't take a lot for her to get nervous. "I'm sorry..." This was wrong of her. She had totally let her shields fall. Agh! It felt as it she was losing her mind some days. "I shouldn't have done that, Kiki."

Although the butterflies in her stomach were doing back flips, Kiki was trying to not act as if she was extremely thrown off. "It's fine. Um, how about we get some sleep?" That seemed like the thing Fran would want to do.

"I suppose we need it." It didn't take long for Fran to fall asleep, especially if she used a coconut or bat to knock herself out. Fran simply went for the nearest rock and laid her hand on it. It worked for a makeshift pillow. "Night, Kiki."

"Night, Fran..."


End file.
